Love Is All That Matters
by Briee
Summary: Doyle returns from the afterlife. Cordelia/Doyle one-shot.


**Author's note: I've never written a Doyle/Cordelia story. But after watching the first season for like, the 5****th**** time, I felt it was time for me to write one. Doyle was a great character and it is unfortunate that the actor was kicked off the show. I would have been curious to see how they ended up together. **

* * *

Light was shining all around him. Wind hit his face as he free-fell, making his eyes water slightly. A scream with lodged in his throat but refused to be uttered. His face spiked repeatedly, although there was no controlling it.

Suddenly, the abyss hit bottom and Doyle fell flat on his face. He waited for the pain to set in but there was none. It was at this point that he knew he was dead.

He got up more quickly than he probably would if he had been alive. Standing a few feet in front of him were a man and a woman. They were odd looking though; gold skin with blue streaks. The Powers That Be. It was the only explanation as to who these people were. Because they certainly didn't have wings or horns.

"Allen Doyle," the woman said, taking a step down from the platform before a lit up tunnel.

"That would be me."

"Do you know why you have been called before us?"

"I'm dead?"

"Yes, you are. You saved a boat full of demons, one vampire, and a human with your sacrifice."

"A human whom you are in love with," the male said.

"I am very much in love with her," he said, momentarily thinking back to the kiss they shared before he jumped on the ball of light.

"You sacrificed yourself to save her."

"As much as I'm going to sound like an ass, yeah, primarily to save her. I wanted to save the rest of them as well, but Cordelia was the one I wanted to save the most." He paused for a moment. "Wow. I feel like I just repeated myself quite a bit. Did that make any sense to you?"

"We understand," the woman said. She looked back at the man and some sort of communication seemed to have gone between them.

The man spoke up. "Your act was selfless. You chose to sacrifice yourself to save the woman you love, as well as innocent demons who were trying to escape from an untimely demise. The vampire Angelus was prepared to do as you did, knowing that there was a possibility of complete death for himself."

"The world needs Angel to save them. I just figured that I wasn't as important as he is."

"Your visions were important. They saved the lives of many humans and demons." They were politely avoiding a comparison of Doyle's importance vs Angel's, and maybe they were right, that you couldn't compare one mortal's importance to another's.

"Not to sound rude or anything, but where are you going with this?"

"You are to be returned to Earth," the woman said.

"Seriously? That's great!" Doyle paused for a moment. "There's no trick to this, is there?"

"We do not trick."

"Right. Sorry." Doyle cleared his throat. "So when do I get to go back?"

As soon as the words had left his lips, he found himself blinded by a white light.

_-_-_-_-_-_

Sore and feeling hungover, Doyle slowly opened his eyes. His grimy walls were the first thing he saw. Memories rushed back to him and he wondered if it had all been a dream. Rolling out of bed, his stomach heaved slightly but settled. A small shiver rand through Doyle and he suddenly realised that he was naked.

Confused, he looked around his room for the clothes he might have shed the night before. He never slept in the nude, so he either was insanely drunk or he had brought someone home with him. Quickly changing into his demon self, he sniffed the room. There was no trace of anyone or anything else in his room. Weirded out by the nakedness and lack of reason for it, he came to the conclusion that the dream must have been what truly transpired.

He took a shower and got dressed, still feeling off. Doyle made his way to the office, trying to sort through his memories to determine what had been real and what had been dreamt.

First thing first: he was going to ask Angel what the Powers That Be looked like, so he could figure out who that man and woman were. Second thing on the agenda: ask Cordelia out. If there was ever a time to be bold, this was it.

As he walked past the small window, he could see into the office. Cordelia and Angel were there, looking sombre. For a moment, Doyle wished he could have put on a mask, before realizing that he could go demon. They had seldom seen him in that form.

Grinning from ear to ear, the spikes elongated from his face, he opened the door to the office. The vampire and the human looked up at him.

"We're kinda closed right now," Cordelia said, businesslike, as if she dealt with spike-faced demons all the time. "Your crisis will have to wait."

" So I'm gone for a while and already you forget what I look like?" Doyle said, the grin getting wider.

Angel squinted, taking a better look. "Doyle?"

Spikes retracting and green going away, Doyle's human face returned. "Well, at least Mr. Brooding over there recognized me. Cordy, I am quite-"

His words were cut off as Cordelia flung herself into his arms. "You're alive! You're alive!" she muttered into the crook of his neck.

"Yes, yes, I am." Doyle inhaled the scent that was Cordelia. He didn't need demon senses to find delight in that. "Go out with me. Please." He said the words ever so softly, he wasn't sure if she heard them.

He was about to repeat himself when he heard a soft, "Yes, yes I will."

If it was possible, his grin got even bigger. He would have thought his face would be hurting but surprisingly it didn't.

Cordelia finally pulled away from him. Her eyes were red from tears and Doyle wiped one off of her cheek. It was such a cliché moment, but it just felt so right.

"So Doyle, tell us how you survived. We thought for sure that that machine had turned you to ashes," Angel said, taking a sip of coffee. He made a face and put the coffee down.

"Well, let's see. I turned off the machine thing, and all I could see around me was white. I was falling down some white abyss and proceeded to fall flat on my face. It should have hurt, but it didn't so I knew I must be dead. Then there were these weird people, a man and a woman, with gold skin and like, blue lines-"

Angel twitched. "The Powers That Be?"

"I wasn't sure at the time, but yeah, them. Anyways, they said that I had sacrificed myself to save all of you, especially… uh, anyways they also went on to say that I was important to this thing we have going on, you know the whole saving-the-world. So they sent me back. I had one helluva headache this morning."

"Wow," said both Cordelia and Angel.

Angel came over to Doyle. "I know this is really not my style but…" He gave Doyle a sort of awkward hug that lasted mere seconds. "I'm glad to have you back."

The two men stared at each other, shifting awkwardly. "Yeah, thanks. Um, no offence Angel, but can we never do that again?"

Angle grinned. "Thank god."

The three laughed and Doyle couldn't help but noticed that Cordelia was looking at him. With a smile on her pretty face.

_-_-_-_-_-_-_

They set a date. It turned out to come after a hard day's work, where both of them needed some time to just have fun, maybe have a few drinks, and basically unwind. Angel was staying home to rest. He had taken quite a beating fighting the latest demon. Most vampires hibernated during the day and were active at night, but of course Angel was not a normal vampire.

After the fourth round of drinks had come to an end, both were feeling tipsy. Laughter bubbled from their lips easier and soon they were speaking freely.

"Cordy, you know I love you. I really do."

"You are a cool guy Doyle. Even when you do go all demon-y."

Doyle groaned and put his hands. "Angel tell you all about it?"

"Well, after you changed and jumped in front of the lighty thing, I asked Angel about it all."

"And you're okay with it?"

"Well duh. You're still Doyle." She giggled. "Plus, you're cute either way." Cordelia put her hand over her mouth. "Oops, that wasn't supposed to come out."

Doyle grinned. "I think we've had enough. We should go home before we really start sharing secrets."

Cordelia got up, stumbling slightly. Doyle held her arm to help her stay upright. "It might not have been a good idea to start drinking before we had any kind of supper."

"I can't even remember if we had lunch."

"There was that snack we had. Some sort of sandwich."

"Oh, yeah." Doyle's face scrunched, trying to remember when they had eaten it. Unable to figure it out through the alcohol, he just shrugged. "Let's get you home."

Priding himself that he had found a decent place for their date not far from Cordelia's apartment, he walked with her. He wasn't sure how he was going to get home afterwards, but taking the night bus was an option.

After fishing her keys from her purse, Cordelia managed to open the door to her place. "Do you want to come inside?"

"Uh, I'm not sure if I should." His insides were screaming _YES GO INSIDE!_ Doyle hushed them the best he could.

"Don't worry. It's not like I'm going to hurt you or something."

Doyle wanted to laugh. That was so not what he was worried about. Instead, he said, "Well, if you insist." A goofy grin was forming on his face.

The two went inside. Cordelia turned to Doyle, a yawn breaking. "I'm sorry, but I'm so tired all of a sudden. If you want to crash on the couch, that's fine with me."

"I wouldn't want to impose. I was going to walk or take a bus or something."

"Let me rephrase that: Can you stay please? I don't want to wake up in an empty apartment tomorrow and think: He's really gone and it was just a dream."

Hope filled his chest. She wanted him there. "Anything for you, love."

She smiled, placing her palm on his cheek. He leaned into the touch before she pulled away and went into her bedroom.

A blanket was already on the couch and some of throw pillows were comfy enough for Doyle. He settled down on the sofa and the lights suddenly dimmed with nobody visibly touching the switch. For a moment, he started freaking out, but realized it was only the friendly ghost helping out.

"Thanks Denis. You can turn them off if you want."

The only light that was now available was the one streaming in from the window. Taking off his shoes and coat, Doyle made himself comfortable. The button of his jeans were digging into his stomach, so he took them off, making sure he placed them close enough to the sofa to put on quickly in the morning when Cordelia woke up. Just because she was starting to accept him, didn't mean that he needed to scare her away with visions of his boxer-and-t-shirt clad body. Especially considering the amount of hair that covered his body. To stop himself from thinking of the perfect, hairless men that Cordelia must be interested in, he took in the living room.

Before he could figure out the pattern on the chair across the room, he fell into a deep sleep.

_-_-_-_-_-_

The scent of eggs and bacon first woke his sense of smell before it woke him completely. Doyle felt his way to his jeans and put them on.

As he got up, the headache he had wasn't too bad this morning and for once, the smell of breakfast wasn't making him nauseous. Leaning on the door frame of the kitchen, Doyle watched as Cordelia moved gracefully around her kitchen.

She turned around and jumped slightly. "Doyle, I didn't hear you get up!"

"Smell of bacon is a sure fire way to get a man to wake up in the morning." After a moment's pause, he added, "Although there are other ways that get our attention as well. And they don't involve food."

Cordelia laughed and smacked his arm. "Of course you would think that."

The smile that was on her face made Doyle ridiculously happy.

During their meal, they talked about work, wondering if Angel was going to ask them to come in. Doyle suggested they call him to find out if he recovered.

While Cordelia removed the dishes and filled the sink with water, Doyle called their boss.

"Hey Angel. Do you need us to come in today?"

" 'Us' as in you and Cordy?"

"Yeah. I ended up crashing on her couch last night."

"And you don't want to come to work…."

"Just asking. You weren't hundred percent last night when we left."

"I'm fine. But be here by one." Angel would of course be there at dawn, not because he was dedicated, but because he would burn up if he went outside during daylight. Not to mention, his office was above his bedroom.

After Doyle placed the phone in the cradle, he went to help Cordelia with the dishes.

"You dry," she said, throwing him a towel.

Just as Doyle was drying the last plate, he noticed something yellow in the corner. "Cordy, I think you missed a spot."

Leaning in, she glanced to where he was pointing. "I don't see it."

"Look, it's right there!"

Frustrated, Cordelia took the spray nozzle and hit the plate with water. Most of it splashed onto Doyle.

"Hey! What was that for?"

Putting the plate down on the counter, Doyle reached for the sprayer. Instead of being able to grab it, he got sprayed by Cordelia again. Repeatedly, and on purpose.

The two fought over the sprayer, getting them both wet in the process. Doyle was finally able to pry it from Cordelia's hands, having to pin her body with his against the counter. He realized that this position could lead to some interesting things.

And all it took was one look at Cordelia to set things in motion. Breathing slightly heavy, her eyes shining, and a grin on her face made Doyle unable to stop himself. Placing both hands on either side of her face, he kissed her.

There was no urgency this time. No "I'm going to die in minute" feelings. No sadness. The kiss was only filled with love and happiness.

Finally, when he pulled away, he leaned his forehead on hers. "I meant was I said last night. I love you."

Cordelia grinned. "I think I might love you too. Just don't die on me again, okay? At least not any time soon. I don't think I could deal with that."

"I'll try my best, love."

At the back of his head he wondered if the Powers That Be had this happy ending in mind. Probably not; they were focused on cosmic wars and apocalypses, and love was just a useful motivation. But Doyle didn't care. His beloved was in his arms, and that was all that mattered at the moment.

* * *

**Author's note:**__**Reviews are very much welcomed!**


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